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The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party has approved the Benue State congress held on October 3, 2024.
The congress, which was held in Makurdi, produced Ezekiel Adaji as the state chairman.
The approval came as two former governors, Gabriel Suswam and Samuel Ortom, claimed supremacy in the state chapter.
The party had earlier appointed the Napoleon Bali-led caretaker committee for the party to conduct the congress held on October 3.
A faction led by Suswam, who has eyes on the national chairmanship of the party, claimed that the October 3 congress would not hold, due to a subsisting order of a Makurdi High Court.
A member of the faction and former House of Representatives member, Terngu Tsegba, at a media briefing in Makurdi, claimed that following disagreements over the conduct of ward congresses of the party in the state, “some members of our party approached the Benue State High Court sitting in Makurdi, wherein an order of interim injunction was issued restraining the PDP, Iliya Umar Damagum, Umar Bature and Senator Napoleon Bali led Benue State CTC from conducting the state congresses.”
But countering that claim, the secretary of the defunct caretaker committee, Osita Ogene, clarified that the claim of a subsisting court order stopping the state congress was false and misleading.
Also, Ortom, in another statement on the eve of the congress, said the party was set to conduct the state congress to elect new leaders of the party.
After the successful conduct of the congress, the Suswam faction insisted the new helmsman had no backing of the national headquarters of the party.
In a letter of approval sent to the Benue State chapter of PDP, signed by the party’s National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature, a copy made available to our correspondent, the NWC has, however, congratulated the Adaji-led State Executive Committee loyal to Ortom.
It expressed optimism that the new party officials in the state would steer its affairs to future success.
The letter read, “Following the successful conduct of the state congress of our party in Benue State on Thursday, October 3, 2024, for the purpose of electing new State Executive Committee members, the National Working Committee (NWC) of our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), after giving careful consideration to the reports of the electoral committee and the appeal panel, has, on behalf of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party, approved the state congress and the Executive Committee members who emerged therefrom.
”Accordingly, I hereby forward to you the authentic list of the newly elected State Executives for Benue State as attached herein.
”These shall be the new State Exco members in Benue State and shall hold office for a period of four (4) years pursuant to Section 47(1) of our party’s constitution, 2017 as amended.”
